Aircraft



Mare 26), 1923 C. S. HALL AIRCRAFT 5 shees s-sheet 1 Filed Apr. 26, 1920 ATTORNEYS.

Man. 241), wza 1,449,4m9s

' C. S. HALL AIRCRAFT Filed Apr. 26, 1920 5 sheets-sheet 2 A TTORNEYS.

C. S. HALL Mar. 2U, 11923 'AIRCRAFT Filed Apr. 2 6, 1920 3 sheets-sheet 5 ATTORNEYS.

Patented Mar. 2(0), 1923.

matinee CHARLES S. HALL. OF LOS NG-MES, CALIFORNEA.

AIRCRAFT.

Application filed April 26, 1920.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that ii CHARLES S. HALL, a citizen of the United tates, residing in Los Angeles, county of Los Angeles, and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Aircraft; and

I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, and to the characters of reference manked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates, generally, to improvements in aircraft; and, the present invention has reference more particularly to an aeroplane provided with a vertical lifting propeller over a body of vertical streamline, and a means of operating said lifting propeller by engine power, thus enabling the pilot to control the same whereby the aircraft may be raised from the ground without, or with a reduced amount of, forward motion along the ground and to enable the pilot to allow the return of the aeroplane to the ground gradually and without, or with a reduced amount of, forward motion along the ground.

A further object being to provide an opening within the planes over, or near, the center of gravity of the whole aircraft, said opening to be around the lifting propeller and the said planes to be, provided with slidable members which may be moved along both the upper and lower surfaces of the said planes whereby the said opening around the lifting propeller may be closed so as to enclose said propeller within the planes when the said propeller is not in use, thus utilizing, in forward motion, the surface area of the said opening.

A furtherobject of the invention being to provide a means of opening and closing portions of the lower planes by slidably moving members or sliding wings, whereby the air currents from the lifting propeller above may be permitted to pass downwards,

and around the fuselage.

The present mvention is an improvement part of Serial No. 376,848.

those disclosed in patent numbered upon I dated June 24, 1919 and patent application filed under Serial Number Other objects of this invention not at this time. more particularly enumerated will be clearly understood from the following detailed description of this invention, and clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a top view taken from a forward position showing both the upper and lower left wings and the lower right wing, showing the sliding wings moved in outward position and disclosing openings provided in the planes.

Figure2 is a perspective View of the sliding w ng removed from the plane with the supporting rods passing through the sliding sleeves of said wings.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view of plane spar showing the sliding sleeve and the supporting rod attached to said spar.

Figure t. is a fragmentary perspective of a part of sliding wing showing a cross section of telescoping interlocking rib.

Figure 5. is a top view of plane with both sliding wings partly closed and showing a the opening in the plane showing a part of the cable strands by the use of which the said sliding wings are operated, the other part of the control is not here shown.

Figure 6, is the same view as Figure 5 except in this View the sliding wings are completely closed over and around the lifting propeller opening.

Figure 7. is a longitudinal side view of the fuselage, all attachments and planes removed, showing the streamline for horizontal motion through the air. I

Figure 8. is a cross section of the fuselage at the points where the lifting propeller is placed, showing the streamline of said fuselage.

Figure 9. is a perspective view of essential portions of assembled aircraft showing all features of this invention in operative-rela tion, with sliding wings in outward position, with propeller showing in the ifting position in the upper plane and the openings in the lower plane providing for the downward passage of the slip-stream from the lifting propeller;

In carryingout my invention a fuselage 1 -is provided. This fuselage is streamlined horizontally as shown in F lgure 7, and ver tically, as shown in cross section in Figure 8. In this fuselage a lifting propeller 2 is placed over or relatively near the center of gravity of the aircraft. Supporting planes 3 and 4 are attached to-said fuselage, and said planes provided with openings 5 and 6. Within opening 5 of the upper plane a rotatably mounted lifting ropelle'r is placed, as shown in Figure 9. 8n plane 3 are placed two slidably disposed win sections 7 and 8, and on plane 4 are also placed two slidably disposed wing sections 9 and 10, and shown in Figures 5, 6, and 9, showing said wing sections in various positions. These wing sections are composed of two members 7,

and 7 as shown in Figure 2 and in Figure 9, and held in telescoping, overlapping and sliding relation by three interlocking ribs 11, as shown-in Figures 1 and 2, one of which is shown in cross section in Figure 4. The interlocking rib, as shown in Figure 4, is composed of two members 12 and 12 'as shown in Figure 4:. Each portion of sliding wing section is fastened to a sleeve 13 by any suitable means, as shown in Figures 2, 3, and 9. Rod lat, as shown in Figures 1, 2, 3, and 9 is fastened to the spar of the plane by any suitable fastenings as shown in Figure 3. To each portion ofthe sliding wing is fastened suitable pulleys 15 as shown in Figures 1, 5, 6, and 9,.to which cable strands 16 shown in Figures 1, 5, 6, and 9 are run through from suitable fastenings on wing portions to the lever control 17 in pilot box 18.

All of the frame work of fuselage, planes, and sliding wing surfaces are coveredwith suitable cloth or other material.

Having in the foregoing description given general details of arrangement and combination of parts composing the essential principles of this invention, I will now briefly describe its operation.

When pilot by manipulation of lever 17 connected with cable strands 16 operating through pulleys 15 moves outwardly the sliding wings 7, 8, 9, and 10, these wing portions adjust their length along rod 14 by means of sleeve 13, and also by means of the interlocking telescoping ribs, thus propeller 2 is exposed to the air. Then by starting the motor, by suitable control, said propeller is set in rotation and the resultant 'downward rush of the air follows the contour of thevertically streamlined fuselage 1, with the result that the aircraft is raised from the ground. After suflicient height is reached the horizontal propeller is set in motion and the sliding wing members are moved 1nwardly until the opening around the propeller 2 and the said propeller is stopped,- thus the planes are completely closed and the propeller is enclosed within the upper the aircraft is gradually permitted to settle down to the ground.

I am aware that various changes in arrangements and comblnations of parts, as

.well as in the details, can be made without departing from the spirit of this invention and I do not wish to confine myself to the biplane or the multiplane type of aircraft as it is understood that this invention may be used upon the monoplane type also.

I claim:

1. In an aircraft of 'a heavier-than-air type the combination, a vertically streamll ned fuselage, a lifting propeller rotatively mounted near the center of gravity of the said aircraft, an opening provided in the planes adjacent to said propeller, a means of permitting the. downwardly induced airstream to pass through the openings in the said planes and around the fuselage, interlocking ribs to be used on sliding wing portions, and a means of extending and withdrawing the said sliding wings whereby the openings provided in the said planes may be closed.

2. In an aircraft having a vertically stream-lined body, the combination of a lifting propeller rotatably mounted and operatively arranged adjacent to the center of gravity, and a means of opening and closing wing surfaces above and below the said propeller so that the air-stream downwardly induced by the propeller in operation will be permitted to pass down and around-the fuselage of the said aircraft.

3. In an aircraft having a vertically stream-lined body, the combination of a lifting propeller operatively mounted. adjacent to the center of gravity of the said aircraft, and so arranged that, by the rotation thereof, the air-stream induced-from the said propeller will be disposed transversely to the normal line of flight of the said aircraft, sliding wing portions operatively arranged whereby they may be moved outwardly and inwardly so as to open and close an opening provided in the planes adjacent to the said propellers, an interlocking rib so arranged that the exposed area of the sliding wings may be varied as the same are moved outzi aeaoes g;

wardly and inwardly on a line parallel with duced by the said propeller and a means of the plane. opening and closing the said openings. 10 4:- In an aircraft having a vertically and In testimony whereof I have signed my holrlizontally streamlined body, a lifting prgname to this specification.

6 pe er operative y mounted upon an axis a jacent to the center of gravity of the said CHARLES HALL aircraft, openings arranged in the Wings ad- Witness:

jacent to the line of the airstream pro- DANIEL N. CLARK. 

